_  CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE 
F       HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

Y855  ^  YOUKG 


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CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE 
HISTORY  OF  UTAH 


BY 

LEVI   EDGAR   YOUNG 


CHICAGO 

THE    LAKESIDE    PRESS 

1912 


Copyrighted  1912 

BY 

LEVI    EDGAR  YOUNG 


€1)e  fLakesttJf  ^ttM 

R.  R.  DONNELLEY  &  SONS  COMPANY 
CHICAGO 


TO   HARRIET   AND   JANE 


VVlA)Ull.l  1  'HMKiHAli 


PREFACE 


This  little  book  is  a  collection  of  pen  pictures  of  some  of 
the  important  events  in  the  history  of  Utah.  They  are  writ- 
ten as  they  have  been  told  to  the  children  of  the  schools  and 
to  my  own  little  girls  who  have  sat  and  wondered  at  the  trials 
and  sorrows  of  their  grandfathers  and  grandmothers.  My 
hope  is  that  they  will  inspire  a  love  for  history  in  the  hearts 
of  the  children  of  this  state. 

Being  a  grandnephew  of  the  great  Mormon  leader,  Brig- 
ham  Young,  I  have  had  access  to  the  most  important  mate- 
rial concerning  the  Mormon  people.  I  feel  a  great  desire  to 
make  use  of  this  material  in  putting  before  the  world  a  de- 
tailed study  of  the  Mormons  and  their  work.  If  the  public 
enjoys  these  little  sketches,  I  shall  feel  encouraged  to  tell  at 
greater  length  the  dramatic  ^tory  of  my  people. 

LEVI   EDGAR  YOUNG. 

The  University  of  Utah, 
August,  1912. 


CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 


BY  LEVI  EDGAR  YOUNG 


FOUNDING   OF   SALT  LAKE   CITY 

The  first  permanent  settlement  in  Utah  was  made  at 
Salt  Lake  City  by  a  band  of  Mormon  Pioneers  from  the 
State  of  Illinois.  This  was  July  24,  1847.  During  the 
winter  of  1845-46  the  Mormons  were  making  extensive 
preparations  to  leave  their  city  of  Nauvoo,  in  the  State  of 
Illinois,  and  to  make  homes  somewhere  in  the  Far  West. 
Their  leader  had  been  killed,  their  property  ruined  by  people 
not  of  their  religious  faith,  and,  convinced  that  they  could 
not  make  a  home  in  Illinois,  they  had  but  one  recourse — 
they  could  move  to  new  lands  farther  west.  Could  one  have 
looked  into  a  typical  Mormon  home  in  Nauvoo  during  its 
last  months  of  life  and  activity,  he  would  have  seen  the 
women  making  tents  and  wagon  covers,  stockings  and  bed- 
clothes; and  the  men  busy  preparing  timber  for  wagons  and 
gathering  all  kinds  of  old  iron  for  horseshoes  and  wagon 
tires.  The  Mormons  collected  all  the  wheat,  corn,  bacon, 
and  potatoes  that  they  could,  and  exchanged  their  land  for 
cattle,  horses  and  wagons.  On  February  10,  1846,  the 
first  teams  crossed  the  Mississippi  and  in  a  few  weeks 
Nauvoo  was  deserted. 

The  Mormons  slowly  wended  their  way  across  the  ter- 
ritory of  Iowa  and  established  Winter  Quarters  on  the 
banks  of  the  Missouri,  nearly  opposite  Council  Bluffs. 
Here  they  sojourned  during  the  winter  of  1846-47.     They 

7 


8         CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

built  seven  hundred  log  cabins  and  one  hundred  fifty  dugouts. 
Even  during  that  winter  they  maintained  a  school.  At 
Winter  Quarters  and  Kanesville,  the  two  chief  camps  on  the 
Missouri,  about  twelve  thousand  people  were  gathered 
during  that  winter.  Many  died  of  cold  and  hunger,  for  the 
season  was  severe;  but  the  thing  most  feared,  Indian  hostil- 
ity, was  averted  and  they  could  still  thank  God  that  affairs 
were  not  so  bad  as  they  might  have  been. 

The  first  company  of  pioneers  under  Brigham  Young  left 
Winter  Quarters  in  April,  1847.  There  were  one  hundred 
forty-three  men,  three  women  and  two  children.  They 
struck  off  due  west  and  upon  reaching  the  Platte  River 
continued  along  its  north  bank.  Until  they  reached  the 
foothills  of  the  Rockies  they  traveled  a  level,  grassy  country. 
The  company  was  well  organized.  Every  morning  at  five 
o'clock  the  bugle  was  sounded  to  awaken  the  camp.  All 
assembled  for  prayers,  then  took  breakfast,  and  the  second 
bugle  was  sounded  when  the  company  began  the  march. 
They  traveled  about  twenty  miles  each  day  and  at  seven 
o'clock  evening  prayers  were  said,  after  which  the  *' brethren 
and  sisters''  gathered  around  the  fire  and  sang  songs,  accom- 
panied by  the  band  which  Brigham  Young  had  organized 
at  Winter  Quarters.  Every  Sabbath  day  was  strictly  ob- 
served. In  June  they  reached  the  Black  Hills  and  Fort 
Laramie.  From  here  they  followed  the  Oregon  trail  through 
South  Pass  to  Fort  Bridger.  Here  they  were  given  some  idea 
of  the  kind  of  country  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Great  Salt 
Lake,  but  as  to  the  fertility  of  the  soil  everyone  was  doubtful. 
From  Fort  Bridger  the  party  went  through  Echo  and 
Emigration  to  Salt  Lake  Valley.  Orson  Pratt,  Erastus  Snow 
and  others  were  sent  ahead  and  entered  the  valley  of  the 
Great  Salt  Lake  July  21st.  They  explored  some  parts,  and 
on  the  23d  staked  off  land  and  turned  the  waters  of  City 
Creek  onto  the  soil.    This  was  the  beginning  of  irrigation  in 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG 

9 


10        CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

the  West.  The  main  company  under  Brigham  Young 
arrived  July  24th,  and  it  is  out  of  respect  for  him  and  the 
main  company  that  this  day  is  taken  as  Utah's  natal  day. 

It  is  interesting  to  read  some  of  the  accounts  written  at 
this  time  concerning  the  journey  of  the  pioneers  and  the 
settlement  of  Utah.     Among  the  most  interesting  journals 


THE  PIONEERS  IN  ECHO  CANYON 

are  those  of  Erastus  Snow,  Wilford  Woodruff  and  Orson 
Pratt.  The  following  is  a  short  extract  from  the  journal  of 
Erastus  Snow: 

'^Monday,  August  2,  Brother  Henry  Sherwood  commenced 
surveying  the  city  and  the  public  square  in  the  southwest  part 
was  selected  for  the  fortress.  This  week  I  was  detailed  to  take  charge 
of  herding  all  our  stock  and  seven  men  were  selected  for  herdsmen. 
Others  were  set  to  watering  fields  and  sowing  our  turnips.  Others 
were  to  get  out  timber  for  log  houses  and  a  strong  company  was 


FOUNDING  OF  SALT  LAKE  CITY 


11 


organized  to  make  adobes.  To  those  unacquainted  with  adobe 
buildings,  I  will  say  that  they  are  very  common  in  New  Mexico 
and  other  sparsely  timbered  countries.    Adobes  are  bricks  made  of 


SCENE  IN  EARLY  UTAH 


SCENE  IN  MODERN  UTAH 


12       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

gravel  and  soil  and  dried  hard  in  the  sun  instead  of  being  burned 
with  fuel." 

The  pioneers  settled  on  the  present  site  of  Salt  Lake  City. 
The  first  camp  was  made  about  where  the  Knutsford  build- 
ing now  stands  at  the  corner  of  Third,  South  and  State 
Streets  on  the  banks  of  a  fork  of  City  Creek.  On  Sunday, 
the  25th  of  July,  all  the  people  assembled  for  religious  wor- 
ship. During  the  first  week  some  exploring  was  done,  and 
by  August  26th  eighty-four  acres  of  land  had  been  plowed 
and  planted  in  corn,  potatoes,  beans,  buckwheat  and  turnips. 
A  city  was  laid  out  and  surveyed.  At  a  conference  held 
August  22d,  it  was  decided  to  call  the  town  Great  Salt 
Lake  City.  Those  were  busy  days.  The  men  made  adobes, 
built  a  stockade  which  they  called  the  Old  Fort,  hauled 
timber  from  the  canyons  and  made  plows  and  harrows.  The 
three  women  were  kept  very  busy  cooking. 

Wilford  Woodruff  says  in  his  journal: 

^'We  have  accomplished  more  this  year  than  can  be  found  on 
record  concerning  an  equal  number  of  men  in  the  same  time  since 
the  days  of  Adam.  We  have  traveled  with  heavily  laden  wagons 
more  than  a  thousand  miles  over  rough  roads,  through  mountains 
and  canyons,  searching  out  a  land  as  a  resting  place  for  the  saints. 
We  have  laid  out  a  city  two  miles  square  and  built  a  fort  of  hewn 
timber  and  of  sun  dried  bricks  or  adobes.  This  fort  encloses  ten 
acres  of  ground,  forty  rods  of  which  are  covered  with  block  houses." 

After  the  first  company,  headed  by  Brigham  Young,  left 
for  the  Rocky  Mountains,  extensive  preparations  were 
made  for  others  to  follow.  The  ^^  First  Immigration,'' 
so-called,  consisted  of  1,553  souls  under  the  command  of 
Parley  P.  Pratt.  It  left  Winter  Quarters  July  4,  1847.  The 
people  were  well  organized  into  companies  of  100  wagons, 
these  again  into  companies  of  fifty  and  ten  respectively, 
each  with  its  captain  or  commander.  There  were  580 
wagons,  2,213  oxen,  124  horses,  887  cows,  358  sheep,  35  hogs. 


FOUNDING  OF  SALT  LAKE  CITY 


1^ 


and  716  chickens.  This  company  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City 
on  September  19th.  By  the  end  of  the  year,  some  4,000 
people  had  settled  in  the  valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake. 

In  one  of  the  old  Juvenile  Instructors,  you  will  find  a 
good  description  of  the  first  winter  in  Salt  Lake  City,  written 
by  one  who  experienced  its  hardships.     He  says : 


RIO  GRANDE   DEPOT,  SALT   LAKE   CITY 


"The  pioneers  after  their  arrival  laid  the  foundation  of  a  fort 
and  erected  a  number  of  houses  which  they  left  for  those  who  came 
in  after  them  to  occupy.  Some  of  these  were  constructed  of  adobe, 
others  of  logs.  The  adobes  were  much  longer  than  is  the  fashion 
now.  They  were  eighteen  inches  long  and  proportionately  wide 
and  thick.  The  fort  was  called  the  Old  Fort  and  it  stood  on  what 
is  now  known  as  the  Sixth  Ward  Square.^  When  the  companies 
which  followed  the  pioneers  came  into  the  valley,  additions  were 
made  to  the  south  and  north  of  the  fort,  which  were  called  the 
South  and  North  Forts.    They  were  connected  with  the  Old  Fort 

^This  is  the  park  near  the  Rio  Grande  depot  now  called  Pioneer 
Square. 


li        CHIEF  EPISODES   IN   THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

by  gates  and  each  of  them  had  gates  through  which  the  people 
went  to  and  from  their  fields.  The  houses  were  built  close  together 
with  the  highest  wall  on  the  outside.  This  formed  the  wall  of  the 
fort.  The  roofs  sloped  toward  the  inside  and  all  the  doors  and 
windows  were  on  the  inside  so  as  to  make  the  houses  more  secure 


^/^^^ 


^^^<}.M:^^ 


JOHN   CRISMON'S  GRIST  MILL 
Where  the  Lafayette  School  Now  Stands 


against  attack.  Not  having  had  any  experience  in  this  climate, 
and  supposing  from  the  appearance  of  the  ground  in  the  summer  and 
fall  that  it  was  very  dry,  they  made  the  roofs  of  the  houses  very 
flat.  The  result  was  that  nearly  every  house  leaked  during  the 
first  winter.  But  that  first  winter  was  a  mild  one,  which  was  most 
fortunate  for  the  people,  for  neither  their  food  nor  their  clothing 
was  of  such  a  character  as  to  enable  them  to  endure  very  cold 
weather.  Many  were  without  shoes  and  the  best  covering  they 
could  get  for  their  feet  were  moccasins.    Their  clothing,  too,  was 


THE  GULLS  15 

almost  exhausted  and  the  skins  of  the  goat,  deer  and  elk  which  they 
could  procure  were  most  acceptable  for  clothing,  though  far  from 
pleasant  to  wear  in  the  rain  or  snow/' 

It  was  a  winter  of  hard  work  and  careful  planning.  Flour 
was  doled  out  by  weight  to  each  family,  sago  and  thistle 
roots  were  eaten,  and  now  and  then  the  hunters  brought  in 
a  little  meat.  Those  who  were  in  want  had  to  be  helped, 
but  everyone  was  willing  to  share  with  his  neighbor.  In 
the  late  autumn  of  1847,  Charles  Crismon  built  a  gristmill 
on  City  Creek  and  the  wheat  brought  to  the  valley  by  the 
immigrants  was  ground;  but  there  was  no  bolting  cloth,  so 
the  bran  and  shorts  had  to  be  eaten  with  the  flour. 

Says  one  of  the  pioneers: 

"The  beef  used  during  the  winter  was  generally  very  poor. 
Most  of  the  cattle  had  reached  the  valley  late  in  the  season,  and 
then  had  to  be  worked  hard  to  prepare  for  winter.  Of  course, 
they  had  no  chance  to  improve  in  flesh.  Butter  and  tallow  were 
in  consequence  very  scarce,  and  the  people  craved  them.  There 
was  nothing  that  could  contribute  to  sustain  Hfe  that  was  wilfully 
allowed  to  go  to  waste.  If  an  ox  mired  and  was  too  poor  to  get 
out  he  was  killed  and  his  carcass  used  for  food.  Big  gray  wolves 
came  down  from  the  mountains  in  March,  1848,  and  killed  several 
of  the  cattle  which  were  feeding  on  the  east  bench  in  sight  of  the 
fort.  Those  parts  of  the  meat  which  the  wolves  had  not  torn  were 
used  for  food/' 


THE  GULLS 

The  winter  finally  passed  and  in  the  spring  of  1848  the 
pioneers  planted  five  thousand  acres  of  wheat.  The  pros- 
pects were  good  for  a  big  harvest  and  the  people  were  very 
happy.  The  plowing  and  planting  had  been  done  with  care. 
Immigrants  were  arriving  from  the  east  almost  every  day, 
and  their  souls  were  touched  with  gladness  as  they  looked 


16       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

for  the  first  time  upon  the  "land  of  promise.''  A  large  tract 
of  land  had  been  sown  to  wheat  that  it  might  at  harvest 
time  be  gathered  into  a  general  storehouse  for  the  use  of  the 
people  in  time  of  need.  Much  rain  fell  during  the  spring, 
and  the  indication  for  a  fruitful  yield  could  not  have  been 
better. 

During  the  last  week  in  May,  however,  a  report  became 
prevalent  that  black  crickets  were  attacking  the  wheat 
fields  just  north  of  the  city.  At  first  the  rumor  caused  little 
commotion,  but  within  a  week  the  crickets  had  spread  to 
neighboring  fields  and  in  a  few  days  the  devouring  horde 
swept  over  the  entire  valley,  leaving  neither  blade  nor  leaf 
in  their  path.  Men  and  women  turned  out  en  masse  to 
fight  the  pest,  driving  them  into  ditches  or  burning  them 
upon  piles  of  reeds,  striving  in  every  way  to  beat  back  the 
devouring  host;  but  all  in  vain.  The  black  pest  increased 
as  days  went  on.  A  terrible  fear  swept  through  the  hearts 
of  the  people.  The  women  and  children  cried  with  fright. 
Hundreds  of  immigrants  were  expected  that  summer,  and 
as  a  rule  they  reached  the  valley  with  very  little  food.  If 
this  crop  were  destroyed  they  must  all  starve.  A  day  of 
prayer  and  fasting  was  appointed,  for  the  people  had  great 
faith  in  God. 

What  happened  then  has  been  regarded  as  a  miracle  ever 
since  by  large  numbers  of  the  people  of  Utah.  From  the 
shores  and  islands  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  came  the  gulls, 
myriads  of  these  snow-white  birds,  with  wild  cries  winging 
their  way.  A  new  fear  arose  in  the  minds  of  the  people  as 
they  saw  the  birds  alight  in  their  fields,  a  fear  that  another 
foe  had  come  to  complete  the  destruction  of  their  growing 
grain.  Their  joy  may  be  imagined  when  they  saw  the  gulls 
pounce  upon  the  black  crickets  and  gorge  themselves,  return- 
ing again  and  again  to  the  repast.  The  people  gazed  in 
amazement  upon  the  birds  and  their  beneficent  work.    No 


THE  FORTY-NINERS  17 

wonder  it  seemed  to  them  a  sheer  miracle  from  heaven,  a 
direct  and  convincing  answer  to  their  prayers.  For  six 
days  the  destruction  went  on,  and  on  the  evening  of  the 
sixth  day,  which  was  Sunday,  these  winged  deliverers  quietly 
flew  back  to  their  island  homes  in  the  bosom  of  the  Great 
Salt  Lake. 

To  this  day  the  people  of  Utah  are  grateful  to  the  birds. 
Indeed,  the  State  Legislature  has  passed  a  law  forbidding 
anyone  to  harm  a  gull.  Just  as  the  eagle  is  the  emblem  of  our 
country,  so  the  gull  is  the  emblem  of  our  state.  As  the  eagle 
stands  on  our  national  shield,  so  the  gull  appears  on  the 
main  piece  of  the  great  silver  service  given  by  the  state  for 
use  on  the  battleship  Utah. 

The  crops  had  not  been  entirely  saved,  so  the  following 
winter  was  a  starving  time  for  the  people.  They  were  put 
upon  short  rations  and  many  were  reduced  to  such  straits 
that  they  dug  roots  for  food  and  boiled  them  together  with 
hides  that  had  been  used  for  roofing  the  cabins.  In  Feb- 
ruary, 1849,  the  bishops  of  the  various  wards  took  an 
inventory  of  the  bread  stuffs  in  the  valley  and  officially 
reported  that  there  was  little  more  than  three-fourths  of  a 
pound  for  each  inhabitant.  But  despite  the  suffering  no  one 
died  of  starvation,  and  no  one  grew  disheartened. 

THE  FORTY-NINERS 

To  the  settlers  of  Utah,  the  migration  of  the  gold-seekers 
to  California  was  a  boon  and  blessing.  They  brought 
boots  and  shoes,  carts  and  wagons,  ginghams  and  woolen 
goods,  which  they  sold  cheap  to  lighten  their  load  on  the 
last  hard  stage  of  the  long  j  ourney .  They  bought  horses  of  the 
settlers,  paying  as  much  as  two  hundred  dollars  for  a  horse 
or  mule  that  before  their  coming  there  was  no  market  for 
at  all.    The  Frontier  Guardian  says: 


18       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

"For  a  light  Yankee  wagon  sometimes  three  or  four  heavy  ones 
would  be  given  in  exchange,  and  a  yoke  of  oxen  would  be  thrown 
in  at  that.  Common  domestic  sheeting  sold  from  five  to  ten  cents 
per  yard  by  the  bolt.  The  best  of  spades  and  shovels  sold  for 
fifty  cents  each.  Vests  that  cost  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  in  St. 
Louis  were  sold  at  Salt  Lake  for  thirty-seven  and  a  half  cents. 
Full  chests  of  joiners'  tools  which  sold  in  the  East  for  one  hundred 


EMIGRANTS   PASSING   THROUGH   SALT   LAKE   CITY 


fifty  dollars  were  sold  in  Salt  Lake  for  twenty-five  dollars.  Indeed, 
almost  every  article  could  be  bought  at  a  price  fifty  per  cent  below 
the  wholesale  price  in  eastern  cities." 

Again,  it  seems  Providential  that  just  when  the  resources 
of  the  Utah  pioneers  were  at  the  lowest  ebb,  when  they  most 
needed  help,  these  emigrants  on  the  way  to  California  should 
flock  to  their  city,  eager  to  dispose  of  the  very  goods  thstv 
the  pioneers  most  needed.    Many  enterprising  eastern  men, 


THE  HANDCART  COMPANIES  19 

upon  hearing  of  the  influx  to  the  gold  fields  of  California, 
determined  to  go  there  and  took  with  them  large  stocks  of 
merchandise  for  which  they  expected  a  ready  sale  in  the  new 
gold  camps.  They  Httle  realized  the  hardships  of  the  jour- 
ney, and,  upon  reaching  Salt  Lake  and  discovering  that  the 
hardest  part  of  the  trip  was  still  ahead  of  them,  they  were 
glad  to  dispose  of  their  stock  for  anything  that  it  would 
bring.  Particularly  were  they  anxious  to  obtain  mules  and 
horses,  the  very  things  that  the  Utah  people  could  best 
spare.  In  the  churches  of  that  time,  many  a  fervent  thanks- 
giving went  up  to  God  for  the  aid  that  had  been  brought  to 
the  people  by  the  Forty-Niners. 

THE  HANDCART   COMPANIES 

One  of  the  saddest  episodes  in  the  history  of  Utah  is  the 
story  of  the  Handcart  Companies.  Every  year  thousands 
of  people  from  Europe  and  America  gathered  at  the  Missouri 
River  points  enroute  to  Utah.  There  was  the  center  of 
their  church  organization  which  to  them  was  Zion.  To  Zion 
they  would  go  in  spite  of  everything.  How  to  bring  so 
many  people  across  the  plains  was  a  problem.  There  was 
not  money  enough  to  provide  transportation  by  wagon  for 
such  a  multitude,  so  Governor  Young  hit  upon  a  unique 
plan.     In  a  letter  of  1855  to  Franklin  D.  Richards,  he  says: 

''I  have  been  thinking  how  we  shall  operate  another  year. 
We  cannot  afford  to  purchase  wagons  and  teams  as  in  times  past. 
I  am  consequently  thrown  back  upon  my  old  plan — to  make 
handcarts  and  let  the  emigration  foot  it,  drawing  with  them  the 
necessary  supplies  and  having  a  cow  or  two  for  every  ten.  They 
can  come  just  as  quick,  if  not  quicker  and  much  cheaper.  Since 
they  will  not  have  to  wait  for  the  grass  to  grow,  they  can  start 
earlier  and  escape  the  prevailing  sickness  of  mid-summer  which 
annually  lays  so  many  of  our  brethren  in  the  dust.     A  great 


20       CHIEF  EPISODES   IN   THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

majority  of  them  walk  now  even  with  the  teams  that  are  provided 
and  have  a  great  deal  more  care  and  perplexity  than  they  would 
have  if  they  came  without  teams.  They  will  need  only  ninety 
days  rations  from  the  time  of  their  leaving  the  Missouri  River. 
Indeed,  since  settlements  now  extend  up  the  Platte,  less  will  suffice. 
The  carts  can  be  made  Hght  and  strong,  without  a  particle  of  iron, 
and  one,  or  if  the  family  be  large,  two  of  them,  will  bring  all  that 
the  family  will  need  upon  the  plains." 


MAIN   STREET   IN    1860 


The  plan  was  put  into  operation  in  the  spring  of  1856 
and  worked  well  for  those  companies  that  started  early 
enough  to  reach  Salt  Lake  City  before  winter.  In  the 
early  autumn  of  1856,  three  large  companies  of  nearly  500 
people  each,  arrived  in  the  valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake. 
They  had  tramped  more  than  1,300  miles  from  Iowa  City  to 
Salt  Lake  City,  drawing  their  supplies  in  handcarts.  Chil- 
dren, as  well  as  their  fathers  and  mothers,  walked,  and 
many  of  them  had  neither  shoes  nor  stockings  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  journey.  For  pluck  and  endurance  this 
is  a  record  that  has  never  been  equaled. 


THE  HANDCART  COMPANIES  21 

Five  companies  in  all  undertook  the  journey  that  first 
year;  but  the  two  that  started  latest  had  a  dreadful  time. 
James  G.  Willie  commanded  one  and  Edward  Martin  the 
other.  They  had  been  delayed  in  leaving  the  Missouri 
River  and  were  caught  in  the  piercing  blasts  of  winter  on 
the  Platte  and  the  Sweetwater.  Many  of  the  emigrants 
little  realized  the  length  of  the  journey  to  Utah  and  for  this 
reason  they  were  ill  prepared  to  face  the  rigor  of  winter  on 
the  plains.  Some  of  the  handcarts  broke  down;  sickness 
and  lack  of  proper  food  dispirited  the  marchers  and  the 
knowledge  that  they  were  far  from  Zion  disheartened  many 
of  the  women  and  children.  Thinly  clad  and  poorly  fed  they 
labored  on  and  on  and  when  they  were  put  upon  half  rations 
before  more  than  half  the  journey  was  completed,  despair 
seized  them.  The  company  under  Edward  Martin  made  a 
camp  in  a  ravine  between  the  Platte  and  the  Sweetwater 
in  the  latter  part  of  October.  Food  became  so  scarce  that 
the  marrowless  bones  picked  up  from  the  prairie  were 
boiled  for  soup.     Says  one  of  the  survivors  of  that  company: 

''I  cried  for  bread  and  meat  every  day,  but  nothing  could  be 
given  me  to  soothe  the  gnawings  of  my  hunger.^* 

To  understand  why  the  earlier  companies  suffered  less 
from  lack  of  food  than  those  which  crossed  the  plains  in  the 
fall,  you  must  recall  that  the  buffalo  was  a  migratory  animal, 
starting  from  Texas  and  the  Southland  as  early  as  grass 
appeared  in  the  spring  and  grazing  northward  all  summer. 
At  the  time  when  the  first  three  companies  crossed  the  plains 
the  buffalo  herds  were  there.  Indeed,  they  were  sometimes 
so  numerous  as  to  impede  the  progress  of  the  pilgrims.  But 
by  the  time  the  companies  of  Willie  and  Martin  came  the 
buffaloes  had  moved  northward  to  their  fall  range  in 
Montana.  This  explains  why  the  great  plains  would  be 
teeming  with  animal  life  when  one  traveler  crossed  them 


22       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

and   absolutely   bare  of   game   when   another   made   the 
journey. 

The  October  Conference  was  in  session  at  Salt  Lake  City 
when  Brigham  Young  received  word  of  the  sufferings  of  the 
emigrants  on  the  plains.  He  immediately  sent  a  company  of 
the  strongest  men  with  wagons  and  supplies  under  the 


BEE  HIVE  HOUSE  AND  EAGLE  GATE  IN   1859 

command  of  Joseph  A.  Young.  This  rescue  party  found 
the  two  companies  in  a  most  miserable  condition,  fed  them 
and  brought  them  to  Salt  Lake.  That  is,  they  brought  in 
the  survivors,  for  two  hundred  fifty  of  those  devoted  pil- 
grims had  died  on  the  plains.  Nearly  all  the  deaths  that 
must  be  charged  against  the  handcart  scheme  were  suffered 
by  these  two  companies.  During  the  four  years  extending 
from  1856  to  1860  more  than  four  thousand  emigrants 
crossed  the  plains  in  this  manner  and  the  total  number  of 
deaths  was  less  than  three  hundred. 

We  who  have  never  suffered  greatly  may  sit  in  our  com- 


SPREADING  OUT  23 

fortable  homes  and  moralize  about  the  fanaticism  that  could 
impel  men  to  take  their  wives  and  children  on  a  tramp  of 
thirteen  hundred  miles  over  deserts  and  mountains  infested 
with  savages  and  traversed  by  dangerous  streams.  Espe- 
cially is  it  marvelous  that  any  would  dare  to  attempt  such 
a  journey  with  such  simple  equipment.  But  we  must  all 
admit  that  their  simple  faith  in  the  watchful  care  of  their 
Heavenly  Father  is  an  admirable  thing  and  worthy  of  imi- 
tation. Let  us  also  remember  that  all  great  achievements 
have  as  their  motor  power  some  such  sublime  faith.  Finally, 
it  is  certain  that  the  handcart  experiment  would  have  been 
a  success  had  common  sense  been  permitted  to  temper  their 
zeal  and  to  keep  at  Iowa  City  until  the  following  spring  the 
two  companies  that  did  not  get  ready  to  start  in  time  to 
complete  the  journey  before  winter. 

SPREADING   OUT 

From  an  epistle  issued  at  Salt  Lake  City  by  Brigham 
Young  in  March,  1849,  we  quote  the  following: 

^^We  are  about  to  establish  a  colony  of  about  thirty  families  in 
the  Utah  Valley,  about  fifty  miles  south.  We  hope  soon  to  explore 
the  valleys  three  hundred  miles  south  and  also  the  country  as  far 
as  the  Gulf  of  California  with  a  view  to  settlement  and  to  acquiring 
a  seaport.^' 

This  gives  the  keynote  to  the  expanding  policy  of  the 
Mormon  leader.  Every  fertile  valley  was  to  be  settled,  even 
to  the  seacoast.  Almost  every  fertile  valley  of  what  is 
now  Utah  was  settled  by  families  picked  by  Brigham  Young 
for  that  task.  From  north  to  south  in  a  straight  line  along 
the  western  foot  of  the  Wasatch  Range  and  the  High  Plateau 
settlements  stretched  from  Richmond  to  St.  George.  In 
every  case  Brigham  Young  directed  the  settlement  and 
picked  the  families.    Little  was  left  to  chance.  Just  as  to-day 


24       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

in  starting  a  new  herd  the  careful  farmer  will  take  none  but 
thoroughbreds,  so  Brigham  Young  in  founding  the  infant 
settlements,  carefully  selected  the  best  and  strongest  for 
the  pioneer  work.  Probably  no  less  rigorous  policy  would 
have  succeeded.  No  weaklings  could  conquer  the  desert, 
the  Indians,  the  wild  animals,  the  extremes  of  climate, 


WHERE  THE  UTAH  HOTEL  NOW  STANDS 

and  stay  in  those  lonely  valleys,  hundreds  of  miles  from 
the  nearest  white  settlement,  long  enough  to  bring  water 
upon  the  land  and  change  the  desert  into  the  oases  that 
these  settlements  are  to-day.  Colonists  went  clear  into  the 
northeast,  where  Green  River  sweeps  around  the  eastern 
escarpment  of  the  Uinta  Mountains,  and  founded  Vernal, 
Ashley  and  Jensen,  where  Ashley  and  his  old  trappers  were 
wont  to  revel.  Strangest  of  all,  Francis  Hammond,  at  the 
direction  of  Brigham  Young,  dared  to  lead  ten  families 
^.way  to  the  southeast  across  Gr^ind  River  and  to  settle 


SPREADING  OUT 


25 


among  the  sand  dunes  and  box  canyons  of  the  San  Juan. 
There  his  descendants  are  to-day,  rich  in  herds  and  happy  in 
their  limitless  domain. 


THE   UTAH   HOTEL,  SALT   LAKE   CITY 


Brigham  Young  directed  the  colonizing  of  the  valleys  of 
Utah  and,  coming  as  he  did  from  New  England,  he  under- 
stood full  well  the  old  English  form  of  village  or  town  govern- 
ment. The  old  English  town  was  the  most  democratic  and 
best  form  of  local  government  known  in  the  world.  The 
people  used  to  meet  in  their  meeting  house  and  discuss  all 
affairs  pertaining  to  the  town.  At  these  town  meetings  the 
citizens  determined  what  schoolhouses  should  be  built, 
what  fences  should  be  made,  what  canals  should  be  dug,  what 
bridges  should  be  constructed.     They  also  elected  officers 


26       CHIEF  EPISODES   IN   THE   HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

to  oversee  the  affairs  of  the  town.  Each  citizen  had  a  vote. 
It  was  a  pure,  democracy.  It  was  peculiarly  like  the  old 
Puritan  town  meeting  of  New  England  in  that  no  distinct 
line  was  drawn  between  religious  and  civil  affairs.  The 
same  meeting  might  vote  to  build  a  schoolhouse  and  a 
church,  or  to  discipline  a  back-sliding  church  member  or 
a  town  official.  This  is  always  likely  to  be  the  case  when 
the  entire  community  is  of  one  religious  faith,  particularly 
when  they  are  developing  a  new  country.  In  most  parts 
of  Utah  there  is  still  more  connection  between  religious  and 
civic  matters  than  in  other  sections  of  the  country;  but  the 
old  simple  days  when  they  were  attended  to  in  the  same  meet- 
ing or  mixed  up  in  the  same  resolution,  have  disappeared 
with  the  pioneer  conditions. 

Like  all  people  who  build  homes  in  a  new  country,  the 
Mormons  had  to  make  laws  and  form  a  government  for 
themselves.  Since  they  had  children  to  educate  and  were 
chiefly  engaged  in  farming,  their  first  laws  pertained  to 
schools,  water  supply,  roads  and  bridges.  The  first  act 
passed  by  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Provisional  State 
of  Deseret  was  one  levying  a  tax  for  the  building  of  roads  and 
bridges  and  the  second  act  provided  for  the  establishment 
of  schools.  As  early  as  1850,  the  University  of  Deseret  was 
established  by  an  act  of  the  Legislative  Assembly.  How- 
ever, the  people  were  poor  and  there  were  many  demands 
on  their  scanty  funds,  so  the  University  had  a  precarious 
and  checkered  career  for  several  years.  .  It  was  housed 
at  one  time  in  a  private  residence  and  at  another  in  the  old 
Council  House,  which  stood  where  the  Deseret  News  Build- 
ing is  now.  In  1870,  it  took  up  the  Old  Wilkins  Hotel  as 
its  abode,  which  it  abandoned  in  1881  for  buildings  of  its 
own.  These  buildings  are  now  used  by  the  Salt  Lake 
High  School  and  the  Old  Wilkins  Hotel  has  become  a  knitting 
factory.     The  State  University  of  Utah  with  a  campus  of 


SPREADING  OUT 


27 


90  acres,  several  good  buildings,  over  a  thousand  students, 
a  teaching  staff  of  more  than  fifty  and  a  large  permanent 
endowment  is  the  successor  of  the  old  University  of  Deseret. 
The  name  was  changed  in  1892. 

You  must  remember  that  this  land  belonged  to  Mexico 
at  the  time  when  the  Mormons  settled  here.    It  was  ceded 


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OLD  COUNCIL  HOUSE  WHERE  DESERET  NEWS  BUILDING  NOW  STANDS 


to  the  United  States  in  1848  as  a  result  of  the  Mexican  War. 
Congress  was  slow  to  organize  this  remote  land  into  a  ter- 
ritory and  to  give  it  a  regular  government;  so  the  people  had 
to  make  a  provisional  government  of  their  own.  They 
organized  the  State  of  Deseret,  copying  the  legislative, 
executive  and  judicial  offices  with  which  they  had  become 
familiar  in  the  eastern  states;  and  asked  Congress  to  admit 
this  new  state  to  the  Union.  Congress,  however,  instead 
of  granting  their  petition,  organized  the  Territory  of  Utah, 


28       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

in  1850,  and  Brigham  Young,  who  had  been  elected  by  the 
people  Governor  of  the  Provisional  State  of  Deseret,  was 
appointed  by  President  Fillmore  Governor  of  the  new 
Territory  of  Utah. 


WARS  AND   RUMORS   OF  WAR 

The  policy  of  Brigham  Young  and  the  early  settlers  of 
Utah  in  dealing  with  the  Indians  was  modeled  on  that  of 
William  Penn  and  the  Quakers.     Brigham  Young  said : 

'^It  is  better  to  feed  the  Indians  than  to  fight  them,^' 
and  this  policy  was  followed  quite  generally.  What  trouble 
occurred  was  the  result  of  friction  between  hotheads,  both 
white  and  red.  The  leaders  on  both  sides  deprecated  war 
and  on  all  but  two  occasions  avoided  serious  trouble.  Chief 
Washakie  of  the  Shoshones  once  told  the  United  States 
Indian  Commissioner  that  the  Mormons  would  share  for- 
ever the  Happy  Hunting  Grounds  of  the  Indians;  '^for,^' 
said  he,  ^Hhey  feed  us  instead  of  fighting  us.'' 

The  first  great  trouble  came  in  1853  and  lasted  for  almost 
two  years.  It  is  known  as  the  Walker  War,  Walker  was 
a  chief  of  the  Utes  who,  with  his  brother,  Arropine,  and  a 
numerous  band  was  encamped  at  the  mouth  of  Payson 
Canyon  in  July,  1853.  The  Indians  ranged  far,  fishing  and 
hunting,  and  one  day  a  small  party  of  them  caught  some 
fish  in  Spring  Creek  just  outside  of  Springville.  A  squaw 
entered  the  cabin  of  a  settler  on  Spring  Creek  and  proceeded 
to  barter  some  fish  for  some  flour.  The  wife  of  the  settler 
gave  her  about  two  pounds  of  flour  for  the  fish — a  small 
price  for  today,  but  we  must  remember  that  white  flour  was 
a  luxury  then.  When  the  squaw  showed  her  bargain  to  her 
lord  and  master,  he  knocked  her  down  and  beat  her  shame- 
fully. The  settler  could  not  bear  to  see  even  an  Indian 
woman  abused,  so  he  interfered  and  whipped  the  brave. 


WARS  AND  RUMORS  OF  WAR  29 

The  squaw  meanwhile  got  up,  seized  a  hatchet,  and  struck 
the  white  man  a  vicious  blow  on  the  head.  At  this  critical 
moment  two  Indians  came  running  up,  one  of  whom  had  a 
gun.  While  he  maneuvered  to  get  into  position  to  shoot  the 
white  man  without  hurting  the  Indian,  the  settler  grasped 
the  gun  barrel.  In  the  struggle  that  followed  the  old  gun 
broke,  the  Indian  keeping  the  stock,  the  white  man,  the 
barrel.  With  this  he  laid  around  him  so  strenuously  that 
he  killed  one  brave  and  put  the  rest  to  flight.  They  fled 
to  Walker^s  camp,  told  of  the  trouble,  clamored  for  ven- 
geance, awakened  the  slumbering  savagery  of  their  comrades 
and  Walker  had  no  choice  but  to  lead  his  angry  bands  to 
war. 

For  almost  two  years  next  following  there  was  little 
planting  or  harvesting  from  Springville  south.  Payson 
was  deserted.  Nephi  was  in  a  state  of  siege.  Spring  City 
was  destroyed.  The  people  of  Mt.  Pleasant  flocked  to 
Ephraim  for  the  protection  of  its  fort.  Manti  became  the 
center  of  operations  for  the  whites.  There  gathered  the 
bands  of  fighters  and  thence  they  proceeded  to  raid  the 
strongholds  of  the  Indians  and  drive  them  from  the  valleys. 
There  was  no  pitched  battle.  It  was  a  war  of  ambuscade 
and  surprisal.  The  bands  of  white  men  were  worn  out 
chasing  Indians  that  would  not  stand  and  fight  like  men. 
How  the  women  and  children  felt  is  shown  by  the  quaint 
statement  of  one  of  the  women  of  Ephraim : 

'^We  were  afraid  to  go  to  bed  at  night  for  fear  that  we  should 
wake  up  dead  in  the  morning." 

Brigham  Young,  who  had  great  insight  into  Indian 
character  and  knew  many  of  the  secrets  of  Indian  free- 
masonry and  totem  symbolism,  met  the  Ute  chiefs,  Kanosh, 
Walker  and  Arropine,  in  council  in  1854,  and  made  a  treaty 
of  peace.     But  peace  could  not  restore  the  hundreds  of 


30       CHIEF  EPISODES   IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 


fields,  fences,  houses,  barns,  and  ditches  that  had  been 
destroyed;  the  thousands  of  cattle,  sheep,  horses,  hogs  and 
chickens  that  had  been  lost;  or  the  score  of  good  men  that 

had    been    killed. 

The  development 
of  Southern  Utah 
was  retarded  by  at 
least  ten  years  by 
that  year  and  a 
half  of  rapine.  AH 
that  the  Indians 
gained  were  a  few 
presents  given  to 
their  chiefs  to  bind 
the  bargain.  The 
whites  gained  San- 
pitch  (Sanpete) 
Valley,  which  was 
made  over  to 
Bi  igham  Young  by 
Chief  Arropine  at 
the  close  of  the 
war. 

The  second  great 

trouble  was  caused 

by  the  attempt  of 

the  United  States 

Government  to 

drive  the  Utes  onto 

a  reservation.  It  is 

known  as  the  Black 

Hawk  War,  because  the  Ute  chief.  Black  Hawk,  was  the 

main  disturber.     In  1865  the  most  prominent  Ute  chiefs 

signed  a  treaty  with  the  United  States  Commissioner  agree- 


CmEF    TABBY— OLDEST    CHIEF    IN    UNITED 

STATES.    BEEN  CHIEF  FOR  73  YEARS 

—AGE   105  YEARS 


WARS  AND  RUMORS  OF  WAR  31 

ing  to  give  up  their  claims  to  all  other  lands  in  Utah  and 
to  move  to  the  Uinta  Valley.  The  United  States  agreed 
that  here  they  might  hunt  and  fish  and  trade  freely  and 
that  schools  should  be  established  for  their  children.  Both 
Kanosh  and  Tabby,  the  two  head  chiefs,  signed  this  treaty; 
but  Black   Hawk  incited  his  bands  to   war,    and   during 


VETERANS  OF  THE  BLACK  HAWK  WAR— GARFIELD  COAST  BRIGADE 

the  two  years,  from  1865  to  1867,  the  Indian  depreda- 
tions in  the  southern  part  of  the  territory  were  the  worst 
in  our  history.  They  raided  the  farms,  killed  the  colonists, 
and  drove  off  hundreds  of  horses  and  cattle.  Bands  of 
hardy  volunteers  met  them  in  the  open,  chased  them  in- 
to their  canyon  strongholds,  guarded  the  settlements  and 
served  as  scouts  for  the  militia  and  the  regulars  from  Fort 
Douglas.  It  was  a  hard  struggle,  but  the  Indians  were 
finally  subdued  and  all  of  the  Utes  driven  to  the  Uinta 
Reservation.     Here  the  United  States  Government  built 


32        CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

Fort  Duchesne  and  established  there  a  military  post  to 
patrol  the  reservation.  This  was  recently  abandoned  when 
the  opening  of  the  reservation  to  settlement  made  the 
Indian  post  no  longer  necessary. 

The  coming  of  Johnston's  army  was  the  most  distressing 
episode  in  the  early  history  of  Utah.  It  threatened  to  blight 
the  budding  state,  but  it,  too,  turned  out  to  be  a  blessing  in 
disguise.  That  you  may  understand  how  the  trouble 
arose  between  the  people  of  Utah  and  the  Government  of 
the  United  States,  you  must  see  clearly  the  great  difference 
that  exists  between  a  territory  and  a  state.  You  must 
remember  that  whereas  the  people  of  a  state  govern  them- 
selves, the  people  of  a  territory  are  ruled  from  Washington. 
The  people  of  a  state  elect  their  own  governor  and  judges. 
The  people  of  a  territory  have  their  governor  and  judges 
imposed  upon  them  by  appointment  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States  and  their  consent  is  not  even  asked.  Some- 
times the  President  will  appoint  to  these  high  offices  residents 
of  the  territory,  as  President  Fillmore  did  in  1850;  but  more 
often  these  offices  are  given  to  some  outside  politician  as 
payment  for  political  services.  When  this  is  the  case  the 
highest  offices  in  the  territory  are  liable  to  be  held  by  stran- 
gers who  know  little  and  care  less  about  the  people  whom 
they  rule.  Every  Western  territory  has  suffered  from  this 
system.  Oregon  had  a  heart-breaking  experience  and 
Montana,  in  the  early  days,  was  more  than  once  on  the 
verge  of  anarchy.  The  alien  governor  and  judges  despised 
the  wild  Westerner  as  an  uncouth  boor;  and  the  Western 
settler  looked  upon  the  alien  ruler  as  a  carpet-bagger.  This 
was  a  very  unfortunate  situation  and  led  to  trouble  in  most 
of  the  Western  territories  but  most  of  all  in  Utah. 

Both  sides  were  frequently  rash  and  hot-headed.  In 
those  days  religious  differences  led  to  rancor,  unknown  in 
our  more  liberal  or  less  earnest  time.     Furthermore,  there 


WARS  AND  RUMORS  OF  WAR  33 

was,  during  the  Fifties,  a  spirit  of  suspicion  and  distrust 
throughout  the  entire  land.  Slavery  troubles  had  led  to 
open  war  in  Kansas  and  chief  among  the  pro-slavery  men 
were  the  Missourians  with  whom  the  Mormons  had  had 
serious  trouble  a  generation  earlier.  When  President 
Buchanan  appointed  officers  for  Utah  who  were  antagonistic 
to  the  people  of  Utah,  both  in  religion  and  politics,  the  result 
could  be  only  disorder.  Such  officials  could  not  meet  the 
people  in  a  friendly  spirit  and  the  people  did  not  and  could 
not  treat  the  officials  with  the  respect  due  to  their  high  office. 
President  Buchanan's  judges  were  not  in  sympathy  with 
some  of  the  laws  enacted  by  the  people  of  Utah.  There 
were  some  blue  laws  on  the  statute  books  which  we  should 
not  think  of  passing  today  and  which  have  no  counterpart 
except  in  the  blue  laws  of  the  Puritans  of  Massachusetts. 
There  was  one,  for  example,  that  made  a  man  liable  to  a 
fine  of  twenty-five  dollars  for  swearing.  Some  of  the 
institutions,  too,  were  peculiar  and  would  not  be  upheld  by 
the  judges  from  the  East.  The  Federal  officers  assumed  a 
dictatorial  tone  which  angered  the  people  of  Utah.  Was 
not  this  their  land,  rescued  by  them  from  the  desert  and  the 
savage  at  the  price  of  blood  and  extreme  hardship?  Should 
they  sit  supinely  by  and  see  their  independence  trodden 
down  by  an  upstart  aUen?  Such  hot  counsels  on  both  sides 
precipitated  an  open  rupture  between  the  Federal  judges 
and  the  people  of  Utah.  The  judges  found  that  it  became 
increasingly  difficult  to  exact  the  usual  deference  to  the 
processes  of  law.  The  people,  who  had  been  perfectly 
docile  while  the  law  was  administered  by  their  own  elected 
officers,  now  looked  upon  the  procedure  of  the  courts  as  so 
many  shackles  cunningly  forged  and  put  into  the  hands  of 
strangers  to  bind  them.  The  chasm  widened.  Governor 
Young  took  the  side  of  his  people.  The  judges  called  for 
his  removal  and  claimed  that  the  people  of  Utah  had  burned 


34       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

the  court  records  and  put  themselves  in  a  state  of  rebellion. 
President  Buchanan  upheld  his  judges,  deposed  Governor 
Young,  appointed  an  Indiana  man,  Alfred  Gumming,  his 
successor,  and  sent  General  Albert  Sidney  Johnston  with  an 
army  of  twenty-five  hundred  men  to  put  down  the  '^rebel- 
lion'' in  Utah. 

The  army  left  Fort  Leavenworth  in  the  spring  of  1857, 
with  more  than  two  thousand  head  of  cattle,  hundreds  of 
government  wagons  and  thousands  of  pounds  of  rations. 
When  the  people  received  word  of  its  approach,  all  was 
consternation.  Governor  Young  assured  the  people  that 
no  harm  should  come  to  them  and  they  organized  an  army 
for  defense,  which  was  placed  under  the  command  of  Captain 
Lott  Smith.  He  marched  to  Echo  Canyon  and  fortified 
that  defile,  then  went  on  to  Green  River  and  burned  many  of 
the  wagons  of  the  army.  He  carried  hostilities  no  further. 
The  army  went  into  winter  quarters  at  Fort  Bridger.  Before 
it  resumed  the  forward  march.  Governor  Gumming,  who 
was  a  level-headed  man,  proceeded  to  Salt  Lake  City  and 
met  Brigham  Young.  In  this  interview  the  Mormon  leader 
was  assured  that  no  harm  should  come  to  his  people  should 
they  move  back  to  their  homes.  Over  30,000  people  had 
moved  from  Salt  Lake  City  and  the  northern  settlements, 
into  the  southern  valleys,  most  of  them  stopping  at  Provo. 
This  was  during  the  winter  of  1857-58.  Their  sufferings 
had  been  great  and  their  sorrows  almost  beyond  description. 
A  survivor  of  that  march,  still  living  in  Salt  Lake  City, 
who  was  then  eleven  years  of  age,  says : 

"We  packed  all  we  had  in  father's  one  wagon  and  waited  for  the 
command  to  leave.  At  night  we  lay  down  to  sleep  not  knowing 
when  word  would  come  of  the  army  which  we  thought  was  coming 
to  destroy  us.  Mother  went  about  the  house  placing  everything 
in  order  and  mending  every  bit  of  clothing  we  could  find,  for  we 
knew  that  the  time  would  come  when  we  might  be  in  great  need  of 


WARS  AND  RUMORS  OF  WAR  35 

food  and  clothing.  There  were  seven  of  us  children  in  the  family. 
We  put  away  all  our  playthings,  for  the  days  found  us  so  frightened 
that  all  we  did  was  to  follow  father  and  mother  from  place  to  place, 
looking  into  their  faces  for  a  word  of  comfort  and  a  look  of  cheer. 
One  morning  father  told  us  that  we  should  leave  with  a  large  com- 
pany in  the  evening.  He  said  little  more.  There  was  packing  and 
the  making  of  bread.  Along  in  the  middle  of  the  day  father  scat- 
tered leaves  and  straw  in  all  the  rooms  and  through  my  tears  I 
heard  him  say  *  Never  mind,  little  daughter,  this  home  has  shel- 
tered us,  it  shall  never  shelter  them.'  I  did  not  understand  him 
then,  but  as  we  went  out  of  the  yard  and  joined  all  the  other 
people  on  the  main  road  I  learned  for  the  first  time  that  the  city 
was  to  be  burned  should  the  approaching  army  attack  the  people. 
That  night  we  camped  on  Willow  Creek  in  the  south  end  of  the 
Valley  and  at  ten  o'clock  every  soul  with  bowed  head  knelt  in 
prayer  to  God.  As  I  dropped  to  sleep  I  heard  my  mother  whisper- 
ing that  the  Lord  had  heard  our  prayers  and  that  our  homes 
should  not  be  burned.  I  cried  and  cried,  but  at  last  I  dropped  to 
sleep." 

Peace  came  to  the  people.  The  army  never  molested 
them.  It  marched  through  Salt  Lake  City,  without  stop- 
ping, to  Cedar  Valley,  about  forty-five  miles  southwest, 
where  it  built  Camp  Floyd.  During  the  two  years  that  the 
soldiers  stayed  there.  Camp  Floyd  was  a  fine  market  for 
the  Mormon  farmers.  Governor  Gumming  took  the  oath 
of  oflBce  and  was  beloved  by  the  people.  Many  of  the 
large  wagons  brought  by  the  soldiers,  together  with  har- 
nesses and  other  useful  equipment,  were  sold  to  the  people 
for  hay  and  flour.  In  fact,  when  the  army  left  Utah  to 
return  to  the  East  the  people  parted  with  them  reluctantly 
and  some  of  the  soldiers  deserted  and  remained  in  the 
territory.  In  Bancroft's  History  of  Utah  you  will  find  the 
following  interesting  passage: 

"During  the  march  of  the  army,  not  a  house  was  disturbed,  not 
a  citizen  molested;  and  during  its  sojourn  of  over  two  years  in  the 


36       CHIEF  EPISODES   IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

territory,  instances  were  rare  indeed  of  gross  misconduct  on  the 
part  of  the  soldiery.  The  Mormons,  who  had  been  eager  to  fight 
the  troops,  were  now  thankful  for  their  arrival.  Many  of  the 
settlers  were  still  very  poor.  They  had  a  few  cattle  and  a  few 
implements  of  husbandry  but  little  else  of  this  world's  goods,  save 
their  farms  and  dwellings.  They  were  ill-clad  and  poorly  fed,  their 
diet  consisting  of  preparations  of  corn,  flour  and  milk,  with  beet 
molasses,  and  the  fruits  and  vegetables  of  their  gardens.  Now 
they  had  an  opportunity  to  exchange  the  products  of  their  fields 
and  dairies  for  clothing  and  for  such  luxuries  as  tea,  coffee,  sugar 
and  tobacco." 


LIFE  BEFORE  THE  RAILROAD   CAME 

There  were  good  roads  in  Utah  even  before  the  railroads 
came.  You  will  remember  that  the  old  Spanish  Trail  from 
Santa  Fe  and  Taos  to  Southern  California,  ran  through 
Utah.  After  crossing  Green  River  from  the  east,  it  divided, 
one  branch  running  through  Spanish  Fork  Canyon  to  Utah 
Valley  and  Lake,  and  the  other  through  Emery  Canyon  to 
Sevier  Valley  and  Lake.  Thence  it  ran  southwestward  to 
Southern  California.  Just  as  the  Spaniards  used  this  trail 
to  drive  horses  and  mules  from  California  to  their  ranches 
in  New  Mexico,  so  the  Mormon  Pioneers  traveled  it  to  and 
from  California.  They  drove  great  freight  outfits  over  it, 
for  the  merchants  of  Salt  Lake  City  had  much  of  their 
freight  come  by  ship  to  San  Bernardino,  whence  it  was 
conveyed  by  wagon  more  than  one  thousand  miles  to  Salt 
Lake  City.  Much  of  the  stock  for  the  Utah  ranches  came 
over  this  old  trail  from  Southern  California.  There  was  a 
Mormon  colony  at  San  Bernardino  which  was  established 
about  the  same  time  that  Salt  Lake  City  was  founded. 
Many  men  still  live  in  Utah  who  can  tell  you  thrilling  stories 
of  adventure  on  the  old  trail,  and  narrow  escapes  from 
death  through  starvation,  thirst  or  Indian  attack.     State 


LIFE  BEFORE  THE  RAILROAD   CAME  37 

Street  in  Salt  Lake  City  is  the  northern  end  of  a  great  road 
that  ran  southward  through  Utah  Valley,  Nephi  Canyon 
and  Sanpete  Valley  to  merge  with  the  old  trail  in  Sevier 
Valley.  This  was  the  great  State  Road  and  before  the 
railroads  came  it  was  the  main  artery  of  commerce. 

The  Oregon  trail  proper  ran  almost  two  hundred  miles 


MAIN   STREET,  SALT   LAKE   CITY,  IN    1861 

north  of  Salt  Lake  City;  but  from  its  earliest  history  its 
chief  branch  was  the  Salt  Lake  trail,  which  ran  from  Fort 
Bridger  through  Echo  and  Emigration  Canyons  to  the  Salt 
Lake  Valley.  After  the  rush  to  California  began,  this  be- 
came by  far  the  most  used  trail.  Indeed,  after  1848,  so 
large  a  part  of  the  travel  over  the  great  trail  had  Salt  Lake 
City  for  its  objective,  that  the  name  Oregon  Trail  fell  into 
disuse  and  the  road  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Far 
West  came  to  be  known  as  the  Salt  Lake  Trail,  or  the  Over- 
land Trail.  Over  this  road  came  most  of  the  supplies  for 
the  Utah  towns  and  many  men  still  live  in  our  state  who 


38 


CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 


spent  the  entire  summer  making  a  single  trip  to  the  Missouri 
River  and  back.  Now  we  can  reach  Omaha  in  thirty  hours. 
Not  only  freight  but  passengers  came  in  wagons  over  the 
great  trail.  The  Overland  Stage,  carrying  mail  and  pas- 
sengers, was  duly  advertised  in  the  Deseret  News  as  follows: 


TRESTLE   235  FEET   HIGH,  BINGHAM   AND   GARFIELD   RAILWAY 


LIFE  BEFORE  THE  RAILROAD  CAME  39 

"Mail  and  passenger  coaches  between  Independence  and  Salt 
Lake  City  will  leave  Hawkins  Hotel  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  and  the 
Noland  House  in  Independence  on  the  first  day  of  each  month 
at  eight  a.  m.,  stopping  a  short  time  at  the  following  way  stations, 
viz:  Fort  Bridger,  Green  River,  Devil's  Gate,  Foi-t  Laramie,  Ash 
Hollow,  Fort  Kearney  and  Big  Blue.  Every  facility  and  attention 
will  be  extended  the  passengers  to  render  their  trip  speedy  and 
comfortable.    For  further  particulars,  apply  to  the  agents." 

Salt  Lake  City  was  the  center  whence  radiated  freight 
and  stage  lines  to  all  parts  of  the  West.  Great  lines  equipped 
with  fine  coaches  and  fast  horses  ran  eastward  to  Denver, 
Independence,  Atchison  and  St.  Joseph  and  westward  to 
Sacramento;  while  less  pretentious  stages  went  to  the  towns 
of  Southern  Utah  and  the  mining  camps  of  Nevada, 
California,  Idaho  and  Montana.  During  the  month  of  June, 
1855,  the  Deseret  News  ran  another  interesting  advertise- 
ment: 

"The  subscriber  begs  leave  to  inform  the  citizens  of  Utah  that 
the  United  States  mail  coach  for  passengers  and  parcels,  will  leave 
Hawkins  Hotel  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  every  Thursday  at  6:00 
A.  M.  and  arrive  at  Manti  every  Saturday  at  6:00  p.  m.  Will  leave 
Manti  every  Monday  at  6:00  a.  m.  and  will  arrive  at  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  every  Wednesday  at  6:00  p.  m.  Passengers  or  parcels 
to  Union,  Draperville,  Lehi,  American  Fork,  Pleasant  Grove, 
Spring ville,  Payson,  Nephi,  Fort  Ephraim,  and  Manti,  will  be 
carried  on  reasonable  terms.  John  Daily." 

We  can  reach  Chicago  now  from  Salt  Lake  more  quickly 
than  they  could  reach  Manti  before  the  railroads  came. 

We  who  read  at  our  breakfast  tables  the  news  of  what 
happened  in  London  the  evening  previous,  can  scarcely 
imagine  what  it  was  to  live  in  Utah  before  the  coming  of  the 
telegraph  and  the  railroad.  While  it  ran,  the  pony  express 
carried  letters  at  amazing  speed,  but  only  the  most  impor- 
tant mail  came  by  that  expensive  process.    By  far  the  larger 


40       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

part  came  by  stage,  when  it  came  at  all.  The  early  files 
of  the  newspapers  are  filled  with  complaints  of  the  loss  of 
mail  and  the  abandonment  of  the  mail  sacks  en  route.  It 
was  no  uncommon  thing  for  heavy  snows  or  high  water  to 
cause  the  stage  driver  to  unload  his  mail  sacks  on  the  plains 
of  Wyoming,  hoping  to  pick  them  up  a  few  months  later 
when  the  roads  were  better.  It  was  still  worse  with  freight. 
The  big  freight  outfits  left  the  Missouri  River  points  every 
spring  as  soon  as  the  grass  was  high  enough  to  furnish 
pasture  and  in  the  course  of  the  summer  arrived  at  Salt 
Lake.  That  was  the  only  stock  the  merchant  received 
during  the  year  and  if  the  supply  was  exhausted  before  you 
got  around  to  do  your  shopping,  you  had  to  wait  until  the 
next  year  to  get  your  hat  or  frock.  Livingston  and  Kinkead, 
Gentiles  from  St.  Louis,  ran  a  large  store  in  Salt  Lake  in 
those  early  days.  They  advertise  in  the  Deseret  News  of 
August,  1855,  as  follows: 

"Our  first  train  of  forty-six  wagons,  loaded  with  a  very  full  and 
general  assortment  of  new  goods,  will  arrive  here  about  the  15th 
instant,  and  we  shall  be  prepared  to  open  and  offer  for  inspection 
and  sale,  a  complete  assortment  of  all  the  various  goods  in  our  line 
and  at  present  in  demand." 

A  community  so  isolated  was  naturally  thrown  upon  its 
own  resources  for  the  necessaries  of  life.  Since  it  was  so 
hard  to  buy  most  things,  the  people  had  to  make  them,  or, 
if  this  was  impossible,  they  had  to  make  substitutes.  The 
men  wore  buckskin  trousers  and  shirts  and  their  sisters 
and  mothers  spun  yarn  and  made  mitts  of  wool  or  dressed 
the  hides  of  beavers  and  made  fine  dress  gloves.  The  women 
spun  their  own  wool  dresses,  and  men,  women  and  children 
wore  moccasins  more  than  boots  or  shoes.  Naturally,  the 
first  factories  to  be  built  were  sawmills  and  gristmills. 
Tanning  was  begun  in  1850,  and  by  1853  shoes  were  being 
made  in  Salt  Lake  City.     This  industry  has  developed  into 


LIFE  BEFORE  THE  RAILROAD  CAME 


41 


the  shoe  factory  of  Z.  C.  M.  I.,  which  is  the  largest  and  most 
complete  west  of  St.  Louis.  Necessity  is  the  mother  of 
invention,  as  Richard  Margetts  proved  in  1855,  when  he 
made  from  old  wagon  tires  a  machine  for  extracting  the 
juice  from  sugar  cane.  From  that  time  molasses  became 
a  staple  article  of  diet  and  the  industry  has  grown  until 


THE   SMELTER  AT   TOOELE 


now  Utah  is  the  third  state  in  the  Union  in  production  of 
sugar.  Salt  was  needed  always,  and  as  early  as  1847  the 
people  would  journey  to  the  shores  of  the  lake  and  obtain 
it  by  boiling  the  water  in  huge  kettles.  This  was  the  begin- 
ning of  the  salt  industry  of  to-day.  From  1852  on,  salt  was 
shipped  to  California.  The  freighter  would  take  a  load  of 
salt  and  bring  back  a  load  of  manufactured  goods  or  a  drove 
of  horses.  As  early  as  1855  some  of  the  great  deposits  of 
iVQU  ore  in  Iron  County  were  drawn  upon  and  nails  were 


42       CHIEF  EPISODES   IN   THE   HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

made,  but  not  in  quantities  sufficient  to  supply  the  needs  of 
the  territory.  Indeed,  the .  great  Tabernacle  was  built 
without  the  use  of  a  single  nail.  A  paper  mill  was  built  at 
the  mouth  of  Cottonwood  Canyon,  but  the  industry  soon 
died  for  lack  of  pulp  timber  to  support  it.  The  woolen  mill 
at  Provo,  built  in  1870,  had  a  more  prosperous  career  and 
is  still  flourishing.     The  following  advertisement  from  the 


BUILDING  THE  TABERNACLE 

Deseret  News  of  May,  1862,  will  show  how  ambitious  the 
pioneers  were  to  built  up  home  industry: 

"Ye  People  of  Deseret,  Read  This:  James  Shelmerdine  begs 
to  inform  the  public  that  if  they  really  feel  determined  to  encourage 
home  manufactures,  let  them  bring  their  beaver,  wolf,  fox,  rabbit 
and  other  furs  to  his  hat  manufactory  on  Emigration  Street  two  and 
a  half  blocks  east  of  East  Temple  Street,  and  get  in  exchange  good, 
home  made  hats  of  good  quality.'' 

The  theatres  and  schools  deserve  special  mention.  Though 
most  of  this  little  history  deals  with  the  material  struggles 


LIFE   BEFORE  THE  RAILROAD  CAME 


43 


of  the  Mormon  pioneers — their  daily  fight  with  the  elements 
for  food  and  shelter  and  raiment — we  should  be  sorry  to 
leave  the  impression  that  this  was  the  whole  of  their  aim 


INTERIOR  VIEW  OF  TEMPLE   GROUNDS,  SALT   LAKE   CITY 


and  the  sum  of  their  efforts.  Nor  do  we  mean  to  speak  of 
their  strong  religious  life  in  this  connection.  Besides  their 
religious  activities  they  worked  earnestly  to  improve  the 
minds  and  raise  the  ideals  of  old  as  well  as  young.  For 
the  mature,  they  founded  the  Social  Hall  and  the  Theatre, 
both  to  provide  needful  amusement,  but  both  having  the 
high  aim  of  training  the  people  of  Utah  to  appreciate  the 
best  in  dramatic  art.  And  they  succeeded  well.  The 
veteran  theatre  manager  of  New  York,  M.  B.  Leavitt,  in 


44       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

his  recent  book,  *' Fifty  Years  of  Theatrical  Management," 
bears  testimony  to  their  success  in  these  words : 

*' Sweeping  as  the  statement  may  seem,  I  do  not  believe  that  the 
theatre  has  ever  rested  upon  a  higher  plane,  both  as  to  its  purpose 
and  its  offerings,  than  at  Salt  Lake  City,  the  capital  of 
Mormondom." 

For  the  children,  the  Mormons  founded  schools.  The 
story  of  the  growth  of  education  in  Utah  is  very  pathetic. 
In  the  beginning  there  was  no  money  and  teachers  taught 
simply  for  the  love  of  teaching  and  a  sense  of  duty.  Their 
salary  at  times  was  a  few  bushels  of  wheat  or  a  sack  or  two 
of  flour.  The  state  is  full  of  these  men  and  women  who  have 
given  their  lives  to  the  cause  of  education.  Clarissa  Brown- 
ing opened  a  school  in  Ogden  in  1849.  She  had  brought 
with  her  across  the  plains  a  bundle  of  old  newspapers  which 
she  cut  up  and  made  into  readers  for  the  pupils.  Her  first 
month^s  salary  was  a  large  piece  of  buckskin,  which  she  made 
into  gloves  and  sold  to  the  passing  gold-seekers.  The  school 
was  conducted  in  her  little  cabin,  but  in  the  winter  of  1850- 
51  it  had  to  be  moved  into  the  Bowery,  it  had  grown  so 
large.  Here  the  children  and  teacher  gathered  about  a 
large  campfire  and  made  shift  to  learn  a  great  deal  from 
their  old  newspaper  readers.  Sarah  Pearson  Richards  is 
another  name  that  should  be  cherished  by  the  school  chil- 
dren of  Utah.  She  was  a  refined  woman  from  Massachu- 
setts, who  crossed  the  plains  with  one  of  the  first  companies 
of  emigrants.  She  organized  the  school  in  a  wagon,  which 
was  set  apart  for  that  purpose,  and  heard  classes  while 
jolting  along  over  the  great  trail.  Lydia  Stanley  taught  the 
first  school  in  Davis  County.  It  was  a  true  open  air  school, 
though  not  so  elaborate  as  those  which  the  city  of  Chicago 
is  now  establishing.  It  was  held  in  a  little  brush  house 
and,  since  there  was  no  stove  and  they  dared  not  build  an 


LIFE  BEFORE  THE   RAILROAD   CAME 


45 


open  fire  in  such  an  inflammable  hut,  they  did  without  a 
fire,  except  on  the  coldest  days  of  winter.  On  such  days 
they  built  a  large  fire  outside  and  any  pupil  who  could  no 
longer  bear  the  cold  within,  could  get  permission  to  go  out 
and  warm  up. 

The  first  school  in  Utah  was  opened  in  the  Old  Fort,  in 


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BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   SCHOOL 

Northeast  Corner  of  South  Temple  and  State 


Salt  Lake  City,  a  little  more  than  three  months  after  the 
arrival  of  the  pioneers.  Mary  Jane  Dilworth  was  the  first 
teacher  and  the  schoolhouse  was  an  old  military  tent.  The 
pioneers  had  brought  a  number  of  school  books  with  them, 
including  copies  of  the  old  Lindley  readers  and  Webster's 
blue-backed  spelling  book.  The  pupils  had  no  paper,  but 
they  made  shift  to  dry  bark  and  to  find  colored  clay  with 
which  to  write  and  draw.     The  teacher's  desk  was  an  old 


46       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

campstool  and  the  pupils'  desks  were  hewn  logs.  Miss 
Dilworth  was  a  good  teacher  and  did  much  for  the  boys 
and  girls  in  that  little  primitive  school.  With  her  Julian 
Moses  taught  a  school  and  organized  it  into  divisions  some- 
what as  we  grade  schools  to-day.  He  required  all  the  pupils 
to  bring  a  copy  of  the  Bible,  holding  that  it  was  the  best 
book  from  which  to  learn  good  English. 

We  have  gone  a  long  way  from  those  conditions.  Not  a 
child  who  reads  this  book  but  goes  to  school  in  a  better 
building  than  the  best  that  the  children  had  in  those  days. 
Some  of  the  handsomest  school  buildings  in  the  country 
are  to  be  found  in  Utah  and  such  buildings  are  being  con- 
structed more  profusely  year  by  year.  Our  expenditures 
in  the  cause  of  education  are  infinitely  greater  than  they 
were  in  the  early  days;  but  in  earnestness,  ambition,  desire 
to  accomplish  something  worthy,  and  thorough  application, 
we  could  probably  learn  from  those  who  lived  when  it  was 
a  trying  task  to  go  to  school. 

We  shall  close  this  review  of  life  in  early  Utah  with  two 
echoes  from  the  past.  The  first  is  from  Captain  Stansbury 
of  the  United  States  Engineering  Corps,  who  spent  a  winter 
in  Salt  Lake  City  in  1850,  while  engaged  in  surveying  Great 
Salt  Lake  and  mapping  routes  for  a  transcontinental  railroad : 

*'Our  quarters  were  a  small  adobe  house,  unfurnished  and  un- 
plastered,  and  roofed  with  boards  loosely  nailed  on.  Every  time  it 
stormed  all  the  pans  and  buckets  in  the  establishment  had  to  be 
set  down  to  receive  the  numerous  little  streams  which  came  trickling 
in  from  every  crack  and  knothole.  We  received  from  the  citizens 
of  the  community  every  kindness  that  the  warmest  hospitality 
could  dictate  and  no  effort  was  spared  to  render  us  as  comfortable 
as  their  own  limited  means  would  admit.  Many  families  were  still 
obliged  to  lodge  in  their  wagons,  which,  being  covered,  served  to 
make  bedrooms,  of  limited  dimensions  it  is  true,  but  yet  very 
comfortable.    Many  of  these  wagon  boxes  were  large  and  when 


THE  NEW  UTAH  47 

taken  off  the  wheels  and  set  upon  the  ground,  they  made  an  ad- 
ditional apartment  or  back  building  to  the  small  cabin.  In  the 
enclosure  next  to  that  occupied  by  our  party  a  whole  family  of 
children  had  no  other  shelter  than  one  of  these  wagons,  where  they 
slept  all  winter,  literally  out  of  doors/' 

The  second  quotation  is  a  very  chatty  letter  from  Franklin 
D.  Richards,  under  date  of  1855: 

^'The  California  mail  arrived  yesterday.  Our  settlements  are 
prospering  everywhere  and  the  health  of  the  people  is  good.  Brother 
Huntington  has  returned  from  his  trip  among  the  Navajos.  He 
found  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  city,  some  of  the  buildings  in  a  good 
state  of  preservation,  four  stories  high,  and  the  rocks  laid  in  cement. 
Last  Tuesday  evening.  Chief  Justice  Kinney  made  an  extensive 
party  at  the  Union  Hall  and  invited  the  Presidency,  the  Twelve, 
and  many  other  principal  citizens  to  participate.  Col.  Steptoe, 
of  the  Army  of  the  United  States,  and  his  officers  were  present. 
The  hall  was  crowded.  Judge  Kinney,  who,  by  the  way,  is  a 
Presbyterian,  danced  for  the  first  time  in  his  life.  He  furnished 
the  whole  party  with  a  splendid  supper.  The  great  word 
''UNION''  was  formed  on  the  side  of  the  wall  with  cedar 
boughs.  The  company  was  composed  of  ecclesiastical,  judicial 
and  military  officials  to  the  number  of  two  hundred  fifty.  The 
members  of  the  Legislature  will  give  a  party  in  the  Social  Hall  on 
Monday  night.  It  will  be  a  splendid  affair.  Eleven  officers  of 
the  United  States  Army,  as  well  as  the  United  States  Territorial 
Officers,  are  invited  to  be  present.  The  New  Council  House  is 
enclosed  and  makes  a  splendid  appearance.  The  Music  Hall  in 
Provo  is  finished  and  the  first  party  assembled  there  at  Christmas." 


THE  NEW  UTAH 

The  advent  of  the  railroad  and  the  telegraph  wrought 
a  great  change  in  Utah.  Since  that  time  the  picturesque 
pony  express  rider  has  taken  to  less  exciting  pursuits.  The 
great  freight  wagons  are  now  seen  only  in  back  yards  or  on 


48       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

remote  mountain  roads.  The  old  thoroughbrace  stage  has 
disappeared  and  its  successor,  the  light  covered  wagon, 
carries  passengers  and  mail  only  where  the  railroads  do  not 
run.  The  citizen  of  Salt  Lake  now  hears  the  news  of  the 
world  almost  as  soon  as  the  resident  of  New  York.     No 


A   VIEW   IN   MODERN   SALT   LAKE 


longer  are  we  content  to  buy  our  frocks  and  hats  annually  or 
biennially.  The  latest  fashions  appear  in  Salt  Lake  as 
regularly  and  almost  as  early  as  in  New  York.  Everything 
has  changed  save  the  unchanging  climate.  The  sun  shines 
as  constantly  as  ever;  the  wind  blows  as  gently  as  before; 
the  cool,  light  air  which  we  breathe  is  as  delightful  and 
invigorating  as  it  was  to  the  Pioneers.  But  the  valleys  have 
become  gardens,  and  even  the  deserts  are  changing  to  fruitful 


THE  NEW  UTAH 


49 


farms,  for  immense  reservoirs  and  canals  have  been  built 
in  recent  years  and  millions  of  acres  are  watered  now. 
Even  the  mountains  are  changed,  for  they  have  been  pierced 
with  railroad  and  irrigation  tunnels;  their  canyons  now 


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CATHOLIC   CATHEDRAL,  SALT   LAKE   CITY 


50       CHIEF  EPISODES  IN  THE  HISTORY  OF  UTAH 

carry  well-graded  roads  and  picturesque  summer  resorts; 
their  sides  have  been  torn  open  to  furnish  limestone  for  the 
smelters  and  cement  factories,  sandstone  and  granite  for 
building,  or  ingress  to  the  wealth  of  gold,  silver,  lead,  copper, 


SALT   DESERT   WEST   OF   GREAT   SALT   LAKE 
Western  Pacific  Railroad 


iron  and  coal  that  has  so  long  been  locked  up  in  their  rocky 
depths. 

Most  remarkable  of  all  is  the  change  that  has  come  in 
the  character  of  the  population.  The  railroad  brought  in 
the  Gentile — ^the  hustling  business  man  from  the  East. 
He  was  not  content  to  sit  down  quietly  on  a  little  irrigated 
farm  and  grow  old  tranquilly  in  the  simple  life  of  the  farmer. 
He  opened  up  the  mountain  sides  and  exposed  the  treasures 
hidden  in  the  rocks.  He  built  railroads  into  the  remote 
parts  of  the  mountains  to  haul  out  the  ore  from  the  mines. 


THE  NEW  UTAH  61 

He  built  smelters  and  huge  business  blocks.  He  turned 
real  estate  boomer  and  advertised  the  resources  of  Utah 
far  and  wide.  Through  him,  everyone,  no  matter  what  his 
race  or  religion,  was  urged  to  come  to  Utah.  Before  the 
coming  of  the  railroad  the  population  of  Utah  was  almost 
exclusively  Mormon.  Since  the  railroads  came,  people 
of  every  faith  have  come  and  all  have  added  strength.  The 
religious  rancor  that  once  prevailed  has  largely  disappeared 
and  now  we  have  a  various  but  harmonious  population  work- 
ing energetically  to  build  up  our  state. 

See  how  far  we  have  come  in  so  short  a  time.  The  white 
man  settled  here  in  1847.  Since  that  time,  the  desert  has 
been  reclaimed;  cities  have  spring  up  along  the  trail  of  the 
wrapper;  schoolhouses,  theatres,  libraries  and  churches  now 
stand  where  the  Indian  wigwam  once  stood;  mills  and  fac- 
tories are  planted  along  the  streams  where  the  beavers  once 
made  their  dams.  We  are  going  farther — much  farther;  and 
the  children  who  now  read  this  book  will  soon  be  the  men  and 
women  upon  whom  will  rest  the  responsibility  of  carrying 
forward  the  good  work  so  well  begun.  May  God  bless  them 
and  help  them  to  be  as  brave  and  earnest  as  the  Pioneers. 


I 


